Easter Sunday Of The Resurrection Of The Lord

Dear Parishioners,

   Happy Easter!  Somehow this seems like a hollow greeting currently.  We have a lot of people who are grieving in our world right now.  As I write this, the number of people dying in our country from COVID-19 is growing daily, so it is not a Happy Easter if we look at things on the surface.

   We are also not happy because we cannot gather as a community of faith.  This is the first time that many of us have not been able to attend Mass on Easter.  We also are probably unable to get together with extended family and friends to have dinner and to share quality time.  Most of us will be restricted to trying to celebrate with those in our household since we are under quarantine.

We really will not be happy this year, but the gift that we hope for is some sense of joy.  Happiness is something that is passing and depends on our circumstance.  Joy is a gift of the spirit and does not go away.  Joy is a way of being.  Joyful people are not necessarily giddy people, but joyful people have a deep confidence that in the end things will work out all right.

When the apostles met Jesus on Easter morning after his resurrection, one could say, their troubles were only beginning. Almost all of them were martyred for their faith.  They probably knew that they were going to pay a heavy price for proclaiming the gospel, but they went to the ends of the known world to preach anyway.  They knew for sure when they saw the risen Lord that the trials of this life are not the end of the story, but that there would be everlasting happiness when they experienced the resurrection themselves.

This year, Easter can be what it is truly meant to be, a cause for joy amid great tribulation.  We are joyful about the religious meaning behind Easter this year.  We are joyful because we have the gift of faith. 

We are joyful because “We believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only son, our Lord. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.  He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again.”

For this reason, we are joyful this Easter Sunday.

Blessings,

Fr. Mark

P.S. Fr. Matthew and I would like to thank all those who have offered us words of encouragement these last few weeks.  We are sad that we still are separated from our parishioners, but hopeful that we will be together again soon.